Our History

The New Israel Fund is a partnership of Israelis and supporters of Israel worldwide, dedicated to a vision of Israel as both the Jewish homeland and a democracy for all its citizens.

We promote freedom, equality and social justice in Israel by funding Israeli non-profits and fostering new discussions in the Australian Jewish community.

Our work in Israel is guided by the vision of the country's founders in the Declaration of Independence, that Israel will be “based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel… [and ensures] complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex.”

The NIF Australia community comes make their mark on Israel by funding work that builds a more just, democratic and inclusive society.

Our formation

NIF Australia was formed in 2011 with the visit of then-president of NIF Israel, and the former deputy speaker of the Knesset, Naomi Chazan. Almost 1,000 people came to hear Naomi at events at Melbourne's Wheeler Centre and the Sydney Opera House.

In the twelve years since our formation we have more than $5 million, distributing grants to important civill society organisations in Israel and facilitating new conversations about Israel inside the Australian Jewish community.

In addition to Naomi Chazan, we have hosted in Australia former Haaretz editor David Landau, New York Times columnists Thomas Friedman and Roger Cohen, Achinoam Nini and many more.

We are grateful for the support and assistance of our two co-patrons, Ambassador Martin Indyk, and Ronni Kahn AO, as well as our advisory council.

Our supporters

Since our formation, we have had thousands of people come to our events, donate to support our projects, sign petitions and more. Click through to meet some of them.

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We acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which our offices stand and we pay our respects to Elders past and present. We also accept the invitation of the Uluru Statement from the Heart with gratitude. We acknowledge the sorrow of the Stolen Generations and the impacts of colonisation on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and recognise the resilience, strength and pride of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples should be aware that this website may contain images or names of people who have since passed away.

New Israel Fund Australia (ABN 70 151 140 377) is registered as a public benevolent institution with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission. We are an independent organisation that works with the New Israel Fund to further equality, inclusion and democracy in Israel. All donations over $2 are tax deductible.

Our History

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